This summer sees the physical return of the Cereals event and will be the first opportunity for farmers to see for themselves the latest machinery and varieties.

It is the first sowing of a number of new sprayer models, drills and cultivators, along with newly recommended varieties and a robot demonstration.

Farmers Weekly picks out the key highlights to help you get the most from the event.

See also: All our latest coverage from Cereals

1 Drainage hub and soil hole

© Tim Scrivener

New to this year’s event is the National Association of Agricultural Contractors (NAAC) land drainage hub.

The hub brings together leading agricultural contractors and drainage equipment manufacturers to help arable farmers get the most from their land – with a variety of presentations, video demos and equipment.

Also on the theme of soil, the popular Niab soil hole offers farmers the chance to see a hybrid versus conventional comparison of above- and below-ground crop growth in winter oilseed rape, wheat and barley.

2 Machinery demos

© Jonathan Page

New to Cereals in 2021 are live demonstrations of mechanical weeders being put through their paces. Exhibitors include Garford, Lemken and Opico.

Other demo highlights include:

• Presented by AgXeed, the AgBot Ecosystem is a digital path planning, autonomous task performing and automatic data collection robot, controlled with just a couple of clicks
• On its very first outing is Amazone’s new GreenDrill 501 universal catch crop seeder box, which is suitable for sowing catch crops, fine seeds, undersown crops and spreading micro-granules, pellets and microfertilisers
• Opico will be launching the He-Va Disc Roller Contour XL, designed for a more aggressive cultivation than its smaller sibling, the Disc Roller Contour
• The company will also be launching the He-Va Top Cutter Solo. Aimed at organic and conventional farmers, it is designed to roll, cut and bruise cover, catch and vegetable crops, reducing the reliance on herbicides
• Making their debut are the John Deere 7R 350 and award-winning 8RX four-track tractors
• Also featured for the first time is John Deere’s flagship X9 combine
• Direct-drilling demonstrations – manufacturers include Aitchison, Amazone, Claydon and Horizon.

3 Seminars

© Tim Scrivener

A packed seminar programme sees 13 sessions on both days of the event, covering a wide range of topics, spread across two locations.

The AHDB seminars are once again at the heart of the Cereals programme and the focus this year is helping farming businesses prepare for the impact of the new Ag Bill and Environmental Land Management scheme.

Speakers will consider how the new legislation, incentives, innovations, skills and partnerships will support the continued delivery of high-quality food alongside the environmental needs of society across the UK.

In the New Era: Markets, Diversification and Innovation Theatre, experts provide an insight into how the market will develop for British produce, alongside innovations and new value-added and diversification opportunities.

4 Variety plots

© Tim Scrivener

Visitors will be able to see 14 of the newly recommended varieties for themselves, giving them a head start on their selections for next season. These include:

• Four of the five new Group 3 wheats such as top-yielder Prince
• Group 4 soft wheat Swallow
• Group 4 hard wheats Wolverine and Cranium
• Three new two-row winter barleys – Bordeaux, Tardis, and Bolton
• Two new six-row hybrid varieties – Kingston and Thunderbolt

5 Sprays and sprayers

© Tim Scrivener

New this year is the re-profiled Syngenta Sprays and Sprayers Arena, which mimics real-life situations, with a bumpy track and sloped areas to really put the machines through their paces.

Demos include:

• Amazone’s new Pantera 4504 self-propelled sprayer
• Making a UK show debut is Mazzotti’s compact self-propelled sprayer, the MAF 4080, being demonstrated by John Deere
• John Deere will also be demonstrating its new mid-range R740i trailed sprayer
• Knight Farm Machinery will display its new 1850 self-propelled model
• Syngenta will be introducing its new 3D Ninety nozzle

The winner of the Farm Sprayer Operator of the Year will be revealed on Wednesday 30 June at 1pm.

6 Drone debut

© Tim Scrivener

Finally, Cereals will see the UK’s first live demonstration of a seeding and fertilising drone.

The drone demos will include:

• Drone Ag: the company will demonstrate a fully automated Skippy Scout flight, collecting close-up, leaf-level imagery at key points in the arena/field and generating a crop report within minutes.
• JetSeed: An automatic spreading machine designed for seeding, fertilisation and plant protection. It is compatible with latest XAG P30 Plant Protection drone
• XAG V40: Harper Adams University’s National Centre for Precision Farming’s XAG V40 is the only one outside China. It is the first of a new generation of drones specifically designed to dramatically improve spraying performance